Opportunities for young players hardly grow on trees at Real Madrid, but Borja Mayoral has found himself under a branch with plenty of low hanging fruit.
First there was Alvaro Morata’s sale, then Mariano Diaz was moved on to Lyon. Mayoral was surely thinking there was no better time for him to emerge from the shadows of Real Madrid Castilla. Then came an injury to Karim Benzema. All of a sudden Mayoral has gone from trailing the pack, to leading it.
Of course, there has been plenty of fortune for Mayoral to feed off but every player, young and old, needs that. A loan to Wolfsburg was a relative failure as the striker failed to settle in Germany and the club barely used him. He featured in less than 400 minutes for the Germans, as Real Madrid were left disappointed the striker didn’t have success in the Bundesliga like Dani Carvajal (Bayern Leverkusen) and Jesus Vallejo (Eintracht Frankfurt) previously.
Then during the summer, he was a fringe member of Spain’s squad at the U-21 European Championships in Poland. When handed an opportunity to impress, he was in that dangerous territory of trying too hard, and mistakes that wouldn’t normally be in his game began to creep in. Around the camp he was an energetic, positive presence despite not being in the starting XI.
Going off that alone, it was a risky strategy leaving Mayoral as the sole back-up to Benzema. Even from a rotational point of view, let alone a situation in which he’d be used as the main striker in case of injury to the Frenchman. Zinedine Zidane basically had reports of Mayoral at Castilla, and feedback from his coaches, to go upon. It’s an extraordinary show of faith and one Mayoral set about repaying on Sunday evening at Anoeta. There, in his ninth appearance for Real Madrid in all competitions, Mayoral scored with his first shot on target.
Mayoral’s goal, the opening strike in a 1-3 victory over Real Sociedad, came as a relief. It showed Mayoral is capable of scoring at this level, and when handed responsibility he wouldn’t hide. Zidane’s big call was also justified, with Marca stating on Monday morning the Frenchman’s bet had come in.
The strike itself was the sort Real Madrid had been missing for some time. It wasn’t pretty, more scrappy, but that’s a good thing. Real Madrid rarely score these types of goals and as has been the case over the last few weeks when they slipped to draws with Valencia and Levante, they lacked a clinical touch in front of goal. A player who is cold in the eyes when in the penalty area, someone who only views the back of the net.
Much has been made of Mayoral basing his game upon Benzema, the sort of striker that associates with the attack and offers various dimensions. The 21-year-old wears it like a badge of honour almost.
“I look at all players in my position but who I noticed more was Benzema who for me is an idol and a reference point,” stated Mayoral in an interview with AS.
Even after the game at Anoeta, Mayoral singled out one particular text message of congratulations. Not from his parents or siblings, even his girlfriend or best friend. It was from Benzema.
“I received so many text messages but the one I appreciated the most was from Benzema as I really look up to him,” said Mayoral, who competes with his idol for the starting spot at Real Madrid.
Maybe however, Mayoral will have to look elsewhere should he wish to succeed at Real Madrid, and the club too, might wish to point him in a different direction. While Benzema is a quality striker, a carbon copy of his style is hardly what the club needs. Mayoral needs to be more of a poacher, a player who comes alive in the penalty box and reacts to opportunities that may arise - like those instincts he showed to bag a goal against Real Sociedad. To succeed, he may have to reinvent himself as a striker - at just 20-years-old he has time on his side too.
He might’ve not expected it right now but Mayoral must take the branch within in his reach at Real Madrid, and continue to climb.
